The El Capitan Gauchos entered their tilt with the Central Valley Hawks with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. El Capitan walked away with a 55-42 victory over Central Valley on Friday. Given El Capitan's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 474th, while Central Valley is ranked 1054th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
El Capitan's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was AJ Tadeo, who scored 14 points along with three steals. Another player making a difference was Braylen Centeno, who scored 15 points along with four steals.
Despite the loss, Central Valley still got an impressive performance from Jellmar Mata, who scored 11 points along with three steals. Andre Flores was another key contributor, scoring four points along with nine rebounds and six assists.
El Capitan has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a massive bump to their 13-9 record this season. As for Central Valley, they have been struggling recently, as they've lost 12 of their last 14 games, which put a noticeable dent in their 5-16 record this season.
El Capitan will be playing at home against Merced at 7:15 p.m. on Wednesday. Central Valley won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against Central Catholic at 5:00 p.m. on January 20th. The timing is sure in Central Catholic's favor as the squad sits on four straight wins at home while Central Valley has been banged up by 19 consecutive losses on the road.
